Improvement in car-couplings



. together; y

" fwIIinIAIlI*.IoIINJtinrnsoiv, or NEW onLnANs LOUISIANA.

sind @titille l Letters Patent No. 104,462,1latc1l June 2l, 1870.

y IMPROVEMENT iNcAR-coUPLINc-is.

The `fcher-bile `referred to in these Letters Pa'tent and making part cithe same.

II, WILLIAM JOHN J onitsjoii, of the city 0f New l Orleans and State ofLouisiana, have invented anfim-l `provedGouplingDew'ce-forRailroad-Gars, of which .3 i the following is aspecication.

The invention relates toa` spring `coupling which is i l self-fasteningand at the same time so contrived that it will nncouple automatically,and with nnvarying l certainty, whenever a car is thrown oft' the track,although it cannot be uncoupled except by hand unless such an accidentoccurs;` g o The objects designed tolbe accomplished by my iniventionare, to makeit` unnecessary for a man to place himself betweentwo cars to couple `the sametogether orto aincou`.ple`` them, andltoprevent a car that is 13 thrown ofi' the rails or trackfrom draggingothers off with it. y A y The precise nature of my inventionwill be atonce y understood .by referring toI the drawing, whereon` Figure 1represents small sections of` the platforms i of two'cars,with the two`parts Awhiclilmake up my device secured thereto, as when the cars arecoupled Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of 1 through thecenter thereof; and i Figure 3, asimilar View@ me last, withmistifference' only, that the" cars-aremct coupledin this iig# At an thefigures-4 y `.ai A are sections ofthe platforms of two cars; and

B B', the two main parts of which my device is composed.

`The part B. is composed `of a block, 1, provided with projecting sideflanches or wings 2 at its upper u corners, to afford a means forsecuring it firmly in position underneath the platform of the car towhich it is attached, through the agency of strong screwbolts, that areVnot vshown in thedrawing, a central circular aperture at its frontend,for more than 'half l Vits length, to receive a helical spring, and acircular l bolt-like extension, 3, of another block, 5, attached to ljanothercar, and two side slots, 4, through which a pin, 6, passes, withthe view to prevent a separation `of the parts 1 and 5, `when the deviceis in actual practice or use.

llhe block 5 is reducedin thickness, as shown at "Z, from a point'nearits center, not reckoning the extension 3 asa part of its lengthfto` itsfront cxtremity, so as to leave an open space, O, between theplatform Aand the vsaid reduced part 7, to receive the catchcrlhooked bar D. y f lflhe frontend ofthe part 7tapers on its upperside downwardly, as does,also, thatpart of the platform of the car immediately above it,only thelatter inclines npwardlyfrom `its under surface, in order to widen theopening C at itsentrance,tc insure the mal position, as shown at all thefigures.

entry of the catchLbar or hook 1),- althongh and when.- eyer one car maybe somewhat higher than the other to which it is to be coupled.

Through the part 7 of the block 5 a vertical rectangular opening orslot'is made, to receive a catchbolt, 8, resting on and sustained bya"spring, 9, which extends to the shoulder 10 of said block, and isfitted in a recess in the center thereof', so as to be ush 1 with theunder surface of the block when in its nor- The catch-bolt 8 is providedon its front dside with a notch, as shown at figs. 2 and 3, in which anactuating bar,.11, projecting from a shaft, 1,2, that isv sustained vinstrap-journals secured on the underside of said'block 5, takes, asshown'also at figs. 2 and 3.

At the opposite end of the shaft l2, a crank, E, that 4is suciently longto extend above the platform of the car, and `within reach of thebrakesman, is

firmly secured, so as to alord a means for depressing the catch-bolt 8,and hence of unconpling the two cars whenever desired.

rlhe part B is secured to the platform ofthe other` car,and constructedexactly inv the same'way that part B is, except that instead of acatch-bolt, 8, a catch-barY or licok, 1),--liormed` and projectingsubstantially as shown, is pivoted in a recess or open chamber in thepart 5 oi' this block, in such a manner that, while it is held inposition 'hy means of aV `fiat spring, 13, its hooked extremity willhave a limited measure of up-and-down vibratiom-so as .to conform' tothe motion of thecars when ruiming, and also accommodate itself to anyinequality' of height between the cars to be coupled.

The hook at the end of the catch-bar D should be pointed, as shown, inorder readily to enter the opening G, and 4wide enough to prevent adisconnection by thesaine off thecatch-bolt8, while'a train is runningena curve of the road, butyet not wide enough.l

to prevent a disconnection or uncoupling of the part whenever thededection'of a` car from the line of the road is as great as it mustneccssarilybe if it be thrown oii the track, so that whenY suclr'anaccident occurs to a car no other `will follow after itby being draggedoli' by it.

India-rubber cushions may be substituted furthe helical springsunderueaththe circular bolt-like extensions of the two parts, B B', andwill, perhaps, a's eiiectually prevent any violent shock at any time andunder all conditions` as the said springs.

I reserve the right, therefore, rto make such substi tution, if I shalliind it expedient.

Afacing of India rubber-on the two parts, as shown at 14 and 15, willmost probably be au unnecessary provision in the practice of theinvention.' It will, of course, be understood that my device must bemade of metal, and strong enough inall its parts not readily to yieldunder any ordinary circunk,

stances to which railroad-cars and trains are subjected.

I claim as my invention and desire to secure by' Letters Patent- Theparts B B', when the same are constructed as herein described in alltheir parts, andv are arranged for conjoint; operation, as speciled,'forthe purpose seb forth.

Witnesses EMILE H. LEVY, RUFUS R. RHODES.

WILLIAM J.' JOHNSON. n

